The State of Games, Episode 29 – The One About Mr. White

Every now and then serendipity raises its pretty head and projects just come together. The past week has been a lot like that here at Dice Hate Me HQ, with some great moves on our own projects and some very interesting developments in others’. And then there are those special times when serendipity whispers a secret in your ear and you get to share it with the world. This is definitely one of those times, and I’m here to tell you that it just warms this old journalist’s heart.

Well I liked the episode, listening to Richard talk about the methods Albino Dragon is going to be using actually upset me.
Let me explain…

You see, I really like Michael Fox, and his podcast and I love everything I’m reading about Ace of Spies. I would love to get a copy, but is appears I won’t be able to
You see, even though I’m following it closely in Kickstarter, I won’t be able to sponsor it. And now that I hear it will only be available through Amazon – I’ll be out of luck there too.

The reason being is that I don’t use credit cards – which is the only method of payment Amazon (and therefore Kickstarter) accepts from us Canadians.
At least with local FLGS and even most online retails, I can use paypal or pay from my bank account. (That’s how I’m getting my copy of Carnival).

I do wish the Albino Dragon guys great success in there ventures and I hope I don’t miss out on to many great games from them.

I loved the interview, though when Richard began to make use of the pioneer and explorer metaphors at the end, I had to wince as a Native American.

Yet, that small moment aside, I do hope that your podcast can also bring Dan into the conversation with a response, just because it seems like Richard is speaking of the brick-and-mortar store as an anachronism that is holding back the hobby. Yet, it seems like your, our, or my local game store is a vital part of growing the hobby, especially if you take into account other aspects of it like card- and miniature- gaming. Just as much as the mechanics and aesthetics of a game, the experience of playing a game is also key in convincing a person that game X, Y, or the hobby, itself, is worthwhile. Yet, creating that experience for more people than just one’s relatives or close friends may be hard to do, because people are generally wary of having strangers in their house, and most strangers may think, “uh, no” when you say, “hey, why don’t you come into my house and play a game with us?”

The game store, because it is neutral, safe, and open, is the best, or at least a better, place where you can show and sell the experience. One person can possibly serve as a hub, but I imagine it’s tough to extend one’s reach beyond, let’s say, four to eight people, and I can only speak from personal experience, but even when I get friends really intrigued by a game, it’s usually only to the point that they’ll think, “wow, I hope we play this game at your next game night!” A store has the capacity to reach and host a much bigger audience than I can in my apartment and probably has a lot more clout and presence to convince that same person to think, “hey, I should just buy this game!”

All of that said, I hope this can mark the beginning of an ongoing discussion, as it is both an interesting and provocative topic, and it’s always good to hear Dan blabber, anyway! But great show, both with regards to the episode and for the overall series!

Whether 2017 was great or terrible for you, there’s no denying that there were a ton of new game releases last year – more than any year on record, in fact. Add those to the already hugemongous collection of quality game titles from the past few years and gamers had a cornucopia of gaming goodness [...]

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